Pima Community College District has instigated legal action for copyright infringement and breach of employment contract against a former instructor. The ex-teacher continued to release online unauthorized recordings of students, including minors, participating in class activities, even after refusing to erase them.
The details of the complaint, which originated on Law.com Radar, were outlined on a July 31 complaint submitted to the U.S. District Court in the District of Arizona by Dickinson Wright counsel. According to the allegations, Edip Yuksel, a former philosophy instructor at Pima Community College, continued to publish unauthorized recordings of students despite being instructed to erase them.
Pima Community College District’s administrative procedures strictly comply with the Family Educational Rights and Privacy Act (FERPA) and the Intellectual Property Ownership (IP Ownership Procedures). The former prevents the release of educational records without students’ prior written consent, and the latter provides the framework for the college and its employees and students to negotiate and protect their respective ownership rights over intellectual property developed at the school.
Moreover, PCC states that the college has ownership over “all Intellectual Property developed by College employees within the scope of their employment.” PCC claims that Yuksel has not followed these agreements, policies, and procedures and has engaged in a continued pattern of refusing to delete illicit and unauthorized recordings of students.
The complaint reveals that between 2015 and 2022, Yuksel made video recordings of numerous class sessions, featuring various students, some of whom were minors. Allegedly, he reproduced, published, and uploaded these unauthorized videos to YouTube and his website.
PCC alleges that despite acknowledging that these unauthorized publications were violations of their procedures and agreeing to remove the aforementioned recordings in a meeting with PCC representatives, Yuksel continued to publish these recordings online. Consequently, PCC terminated Yuksel’s employment in October 2022 due to continued breaches of their procedures, his refusal to remove the videos, and failure to adhere to the terms he agreed to in the meeting.
PCC argues that they have an obligation to protect their students’ rights as per federal law (FERPA), and continued violations could risk the college’s federal funding, as it could be retracted if the college permits the release of educational records without students’ consent.
Accompanying the accusations of copyright infringement per 17 U.S.C. §106 and breach of contract is a request from PCC for an injunction requiring Yuksel to stop publishing, reproducing or publicly performing the recordings. Further, they demand an order directing Yuksel to destroy all these recordings and deliver them for further destruction. PCC is also seeking actual, compensatory, consequential, statutory, and incidental damages, pre- and post-judgment interest, and the cover of attorney fees and expenses.
PCC’s legal representation, Fredric D. Bellamy of Dickinson Wright in Phoenix, has declined to comment on the case. Legal representation for the defendant has not yet been confirmed.
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